Wole took one look at Baba Adora’s face and knew all was not well. He heard Tunrayo and his mother rise behind him. They knew this moment would come. But no one expected it to come so soon.
“We have to leave ___ NOW!”
His hard voice brooked no argument. Wole heard his mother tear into her room to get the bag that was packed there in preparation. They all had a prepared bag. Wole leaped to his feet and hurried to his room with Tunrayo following closely. Their bags were placed side by side. He picked both of them swinging them over his shoulder with some difficulty.
“My you are really playing the gentleman aren’t you?” She said chuckling. Her voice sounded light and amused enough, but he could see the fear dancing in the depths of her eyes.
“We best hurry __”
She nodded making for the door. Baba Adora had his back to them staring out of the front door. His white ashoke (expensive Yoruba cloth) gown looked resplendent in the bright afternoon sunshine. The large white cane he leaned on was glowing, faintly.
“What about my uncle?” Anike (Wole’s mum) asked in a quavering voice.
Baba Adora sighed. “We have to leave __ there isn’t enough time to go look for him.”
“Try his cell phone.” Wole’s voice was grim. He didn’t like the man much, but that didn’t mean he wanted something awful to happen to him either. Family was family whichever way you wanted to look at it.
“You know he rarely carries his phone.” She snapped dialling his number. As expected the automated tone said ‘the number you are trying to call is currently switched off. Please try again later __ thank you!’
“His phone is switched off.”
Baba Adora gritted his teeth.
“If we don’t leave now __ none of us will get out.”
Wole, his mother and Tunrayo exchanged long earnest looks for a couple of seconds before striding for the door. Baba Adora sighed in relief and led the way.
He led them to the east of the settlement, away from the north which would have been their path if this was a normal day. They followed obediently. They’d long learned the wisdom of listening to his instructions.
Thick bushes rose up ahead __ there was a barely discernible path a few paces to the left. Baba Adora followed it walking at a brisk trot. They had to jog to keep up with him. The bushes ended thirty meters ahead. Baba Adora slowed, gingerly pushing through them. He gave a warning wave before he headed right, walking sideways.
Wole came out of the bushes shocked to see the steep drop falling hundreds of feet below. He edged after Baba Adora also giving Tunrayo and his mother a warning wave. Tunrayo came out next, followed slowly by his mother. A low whimper burst from her lips when she saw the drop.
Baba Adora whirled around giving a sharp shushing sound. His mother bit down on her lower lip to prevent more sounds from coming out. It was then they heard the loud terrified screams, punctuated by slurring growls. The infected were here.
“We must hurry __” Baba Adora whispered furiously.
They set off at a brisk trot, keeping as far away from the edge as they could. Baba Adora slowed after a few meters giving them another warning shush. They paused listening. It took a few moments but eventually they heard it.
Several dozen footsteps marching towards the settlement; there was a staggering quality to the sound. Tunrayo and Anike had their hands over their mouths while Wole attempted to take a step towards Baba Adora.
Baba Adora waved another warning glaring at him. He froze shivering. The footsteps moved towards the settlement and the sounds faded away. It all seemed quiet but Wole sensed something was amiss. He was proved right a few seconds later when the bushes a few inches away from his right cheek parted.
A thick muscled jaw came out; the jaw line covered with red and green mucus like material dribbling from both sides of the mouth. The nose came next and he saw the nostrils flare as the infected person took deep sniffs of the surrounding air. The eyes were invisible, hidden in the bush.
Wole swallowed barely managing to keep a scream in. He started to take a step back when Baba Adora waved violently instructing him to keep still. He obeyed, unsure how he managed to keep his limbs still.
The infected man sniffed three more times and headed back into the bush. Seconds later they heard his racing footsteps receding into the distance. What followed was absolute silence. Wole released his breath in a whoosh and hurried towards Baba Adora who started hurrying forward again. Tunrayo and Anike followed, quiet sobs shook Anike’s shoulders. She knew her uncle was dead.
Idowu raised his head slowly peering out of the thick blades of elephant grass in front. Long lines of military vehicles lumbered on the deserted express road. They were headed to Lagos, no doubt reinforcements sent to try and restore order to the chaotic situation on the mainland. He didn’t see them having much luck with it. According to what he’d been able to glean from the reports he listened to on his shortwave radio, things weren’t looking good on the Lagos Mainland.
Not only were the infected running wild, radiation poisoning was rife, making many survivors very ill. It was a humanitarian nightmare. The Red Cross and WHO were using strong words. Words like genocide and mass murder.
The Secretary General of the United Nations visited the president in his Aso Rock villa a few weeks ago. Many said it was to scold him on his genocidal techniques. Since the situation on the world stage had also taken a turn for the worse, the international outrage had all but petered out.
Many states in the US lay in ruins. The military was still engaging what many were simply calling the darkness. The sad thing was most of these world powers, in-spite of their powerful weapons and such; were unable to destroy the darkness. It was like no matter how hard they hit it, the more powerful it became.
The rumour making the rounds now was countries like Russia, China and Germany were considering the nuclear alternative. He shivered just thinking about it. He couldn’t bear to think what would happen if they did choose a nuclear response.
So with the turmoil around the globe, it was no wonder everyone was uninterested in the Evonso virus spread in Nigeria and neighbouring African countries.
A report said the darkness had overrun Libya. He didn’t know how true that report was. He prayed it wasn’t true. If it was __ he swallowed. The last vehicle drifted by and about ten minutes later everywhere was quiet. He rose keeping low and slunk deeper into the bushes. When he felt he’d reached a safe enough distance he took off running. The hill which served as his hideout rose in the distance. He made his way towards it as fast as he could.
The white helicopter slowly came in for landing on the wide expansive grounds of Aso Rock. Half a dozen mean looking soldiers waited to receive them with their weapons held at the ready. The pale faced doctor in the cabin sighed when she saw them.
The doors were opened as soon as it touched down and the soldiers surged in shinning UV style lights on their eyes. The infected tended to have extremely high body temperature. So temperature readings were the most reliable way of spotting an infected person.
Satisfied they helped her out while giving an all clear wave to four men standing some distance away. The men surged forward meeting her halfway. The one in the middle stretched out his hand for a handshake. She chose to ignore it.
“So you’re here __” He growled fixing a hard look on her pale wan features. She wasn’t beautiful, far from it. She couldn’t even be characterized as pretty. She was just there; bland. She had one of those faces you forgot almost as soon as you saw them. And the dull lifeless way she dressed didn’t help matters much either.
Her colours were all wrong, grey with brown that was more grey than anything else. Her shoes looked at least two sizes bigger than what she should wear and worst of all she had bags under her eyes.
“Yes I am __” Her disinterested gaze swept over them and she turned as more soldiers lugged a huge trunk out of the helicopter.
“Be careful with that __” She yelled.
They gave her long startled looks as they hurried to the main building. She set off at a brisk walk. The men hurried to catch up.
“Is the president ready to see me?” She barked as one fell into step with her.
“He is. Were you successful?”
She cast a hard look on him.
“My report is for the president and the president alone.” Her tone was hard and unfriendly.
He nodded falling silent.
Taiwo sat in the president’s office watching and listening as the president and ten of his advisors argued back and forth on the next step to take. He looked worriedly at the president’s pale face. He prayed the man didn’t collapse. He looked exhausted.
As the discussion started to get very heated there was a loud knock on the door. A cold silence fell over the room. The president looked livid. Who dared interrupt? He’d given explicit instructions not be disturbed.
“Yes??”
“Sir Doctor Kemisola is on the way to see you.”
“Kemisola?? She is several days ahead of schedule.”
“Yes __ and she has the vaccine.”
Everyone started talking at once.
Thirty minutes later
The conference room was wide and oval shaped filled with thirty two people, most, members of president Abdusalam’s cabinet and security. The mood around the round conference table was morose and subdued.
President Abdusalam sat at one end of the table while doctor kemisola was at the opposite end. They faced each other directly.
“So doctor Kemisola__ it’s my understanding you have the vaccine.”
“Yes __ it took a while __ but__” She shivered her eyes growing wan and vacant.
The men on the table exchanged troubled glances. When she remained silent after fifteen seconds Abdusalam leaned forward and spoke.
“Doctor ___ we are waiting __”
“Sorry __ drifted off a bit. Well like I said we have the vaccine, I have ten thousand shots here, more than enough for everyone here and some __” She paused drifting off again.
Abdusalam’s eyes grew impatient. “What are your plans to administer it to the infected populace?”
“We haven’t come up with a full proof plan yet sir. You’ll agree it’s going to be rather difficult because of their violent nature. I am proposing (and my counterparts in Ghana and Cape Town agree with me) we convert the vaccine to aerosols.”
“Aerosol? You mean make a spray out of it?”
“In layman terms, yes! The vaccine I developed not only inoculates the uninfected from infection, but also cures the infected making the virus go into remission.”
“Has it been tested properly? Is it viable? We wouldn’t want a repeat of what happened at the Lagos Centre for Infectious Disease Control and Prevention. My men are still engaging those dark___ things with little success __”
“The vaccine has been well tested I assure you sir. We are confident the aerosol conversion process should be completed within a fortnight at most.
“A million shots are on the way to Lagos as we speak. We are replacing the bullets of the security agencies with tranquilizer like shots which can be administered on the field. Once shot, the infected will go unconscious. We estimate a five hour window from drug administration to cure. So we should have the virus under control within the next six months at the most, three once the aerosol form comes into effect.”
Taiwo sighed in relief when he heard that. If what she said was true this was the first ray of sunshine they’d had in a long while. Maybe Nigeria could be saved after all. His thoughts for some strange reason drifted to the Evonso spirit and he shivered. He couldn’t fathom why he was thinking about the vile creature now. It was responsible for the spread of the Evonso virus. Last he saw of it, it was running wild in Oraromi. Only God knew what it was planning now.